A house is not a home
by left my heart in Paris
Summary: A twist on Hiatus and how Gibbs returns, he's gone for a year and during which Jenny does something surprising. Jibbs in the end. One-shot


**This is set after Hiatus, it's another take on Gibbs returning, in this he's away for a year rather than the six month's he is in the show.**

**This is for my beautiful twin Tivafivanatomy, who still has exams and stuff and also helped me come up with this, so hope you like it honeybun.**

"_home" Is any four walls that enclose the right person_-** Helen Rowland.**

A house is not a home

Jenny Shepard sat on the bottom step, she looked over the empty space not really sure why she'd ever wanted it in the first place.

Sighing she took a deep breath, it still smelt faintly of sawdust, just one of the scents that reminded her of him.

The him who had been gone for a year, and what a long and painful year it had been, her heart still hurt to think about the day he left, no goodbye, no apology just him and that stupid handsome smirk of his hiding the feelings he was really feeling behind it.

Her heart hurt as she remembered the steps he took, every step away cracking her heart even more until she could no longer see him and her already fragile heart shatter into a million pieces, leaving her alone to fix it all back together using a flimsy mix of glue and cello tape, that she knew wouldn't last long but it would have to do for now.

She ran a hand across the banister and fingered the dust that she had collected. That was all it was now dust, the past nothing but memories.

Running a hand through her hair Jenny thought back to the events of six months ago…

Gibbs had just left after helping Fornell with his case.

Jenny opened her desk draw and looked at the folder at the bottom, the one labelled as Gibbs's retirement package, she'd thought he would come back soon but apparently she was wrong, perhaps she didn't know him as well as she thought, maybe he really wasn't the man she had been in love with six years prier not after losing his memory.

He still had six weeks on unpaid leave left but after seeing him, she doubted he would be back by then if back at all.

She took a deep breath before leaning up and wiping up the tear strolling down her cheek, she had to be strong, she was the director of a federal agency, she shouldn't be sitting in her office thinking of a subordinate and crying even if it was Gibbs.

Jenny pushed off of her chair and walked over to the drink's cabinet, she pulled out the bourbon and poured a small amount in to one of the tumblers.

Slowly she lifted the glass to her lips, but just the thought of bourbon made her think of him, she couldn't take the sip, swallowing the tears in her eyes, she put the glass down and stepped away from it.

He would haunt her for the rest of her life, she concluded. Every things she ate or drank somehow she would link it back to him, every time she would go on a date she would just compare them to Jethro and come on let's be honest there was only one Leroy Jethro Gibbs and he wouldn't ever give her the light of day again.

Jenny looked at the clock on her wall and began to wonder what the silver haired man was doing at the moment, was he at the cantina have a beer while talking to the local ladies? Was he relaxing on the beach? Out on the sea in one of the boats?

She could always call him she thought, her fingers itching to grab her mobile and get that number off of Abby, yeah she could do that, ask how his retirement is going, make sure she really should file the retirement.

Ten minutes later Jenny walked out of the elevator on the floor of Abby's lab, her music was turned down for once so as the redhead approached she heard voices coming from the room. She leaned against the wall outside and stayed silent so she could hear the voices.

"He's really not coming back" she heard Abby said emotionally.

"Don't say that Abs, he still might come back" Tim's voice sounded reassuringly

"Yes Abby, McGee is right, Gibbs just needs some time after losing his memory" she heard Ziva add.

"But you guys don't understand" she heard Abby whine before tapping of a keyboard then two gasps. "He's selling his house, Gibbs isn't coming back"

Jenny's heart sunk, he was getting read of his house, the house that held memories of his first wife and daughter, if that wasn't a sign that Gibbs was staying in Mexico, that he was trying to move on and forget about the past, then she didn't know what was.

The redhead heard movement in side of the lab and began to moved just as Tim and Ziva walked out. "Director" Tim nodded as did Ziva, before they walked to the elevator.

She nodded back before turning and walking into Abby's lab "Hey Abs" she said sending the young Goth a smile.

Abby nodded "I just really miss him you know" she said motioning to her computer where the screen saver was a very attractive picture of Gibbs.

"Yeah, I miss him too" Jenny said giving her a sad nod.

The young woman thought for a moment "Isn't there anything you can do?" she asked.

Jenny shook her head "I don't think so" she said sympathetically.

"You could order him back here…tell him he's needed here for an emergency and then lure him down here and I'll hand cuff him to one of the tables and only let him go when he promises to stay and never leave again" the bubbly girl suggested, picking up Bert and hugging him tight.

"He's Gibbs he can get out of anything, even a simple pair of hand cuffs" the older woman said with a slight laugh.

"Yeah that's true" Abby said beginning to pace back and forth in the lab, trying to think of a plan. "You could go to Mexico and bring him back" she said stopping in front of Jenny.

"And how would I bring him back, in a body bag?" Jenny asked confused, raising an eyebrow.

Abby shook her head "Tell him you love him" she suggested watching as the redhead looked stunned "Don't deny it we all know you love him, that you guys have chemistry, that you have a history" she said with a smile.

"It's not that simple Abby" Jenny said shaking her head "He doesn't love me Abby" she continued, making the young woman pout.

"We can't just let him leave like this" she said, her voice determined and full of energy.

"We don't have a choice Abby, Gibbs has made his bed, now he has to sleep in it" Jenny said turning on her heels and walking out of the lab, her shoes clicking as she went.

Hours later after the sun had long set and Cynthia had gone home, Jenny sat in her office looking over case reports, trying so hard not to let memories of a certain man plague her mind.

But she couldn't help it, he was just always there at the back of her mind. The redhead then found herself looking for Gibbs's house on the estate agents.

She couldn't just let him give up his house, a house full of memories, something that he hadn't had the heart to leave until now.

Jenny knew what it was like to make a decision and then regret it for the rest of your life, always wondering what would have happened if you hadn't made that decision? wonder if you'd thought about it more would you have made the same decision? Wish that you could go back in time and stop yourself from doing something you would regret.

After finding the number of the estate agent she needed, Jenny left a message asking if she could see the house, she wanted to take one last look at the place.

The next day, Jenny took the morning off to see the house. As she got out of her car the estate agent approached "Helen Jones" she said offering her hand.

"Jenny Shepard" she said taking it and shaking "Nice area" she commented motioning to the road the house was on.

Helen nodded "Oh yes, schools nearby, as is the city centre and hospitals and shops, it's perfect" she finished giving her a cheesy smile. "Shall we look around" the blond asked motioning to the house.

"Of course" Jenny said making her way to the front door.

"The house comes with three bedrooms, a reasonably sized garden and an extra plus a basement" the woman said as they looked down in the now empty room.

Jenny had half expected Gibbs to be standing by a half-finished boat sanding away, but instead was met by emptiness.

"I mean it's practically another room, maybe another sitting room or a games room or play room for the kids" the woman explained.

"Or build a boat" Jenny muttered a little too loudly.

Helen was a little surprised "Oh or you could do that, I mean I don't know how you would get it out but…" the woman trailed off.

"I'll take it" Jenny said confidently.

"But you haven't even seen the upstairs or the garden" the woman said confused and a little stunned.

Jenny smiled "I just got the feeling, you know the one that tells you this is the one?" she asked and the woman just nodded.

Half an hour later after agreeing on a price Helen spoke "Ok so I'm going to need to phone the owner to see if he'll accept the offer and then we can go from there" she explained "It may take a while as they have retired to Mexico" she added.

"Here's my mobile number, call me when you get some news" Jenny said, smiling as she thought of Gibbs's surprise that someone would want his house.

The next day, Jenny was checking her emails when her mobile began to ring "Shepard" she answered.

"Jenny, it's Helen, it's about the house" the woman sounded excited.

"Good news I hope" the redhead said getting out of her chair and walking to the window, looking out over the harbour.

"Yes, the owner accepted your offer, you now own the house" she sounded excited.

"That's great, thank you" Jenny said very happy but also shocked at the same time, she couldn't believe she had just bought Gibb's house, I mean now her house.

A week later she decide to live at what used to be Gibbs's house for a while, it was closer to work and in better distance from the shops than her own, it was also smaller, more cosy, she didn't feel as alone as she did in her George town house.

She began getting furniture and putting some of her belongings around, but it still felt wrong, she left the two bedrooms and had no idea what to do with them and the basement was still bare.

So there she sat, staring into the empty space of the basement, there was a knock at the door that got her attention.

After a couple of moments she got up from the step and walked to the front door and opened it slowly. To say she was surprised at who she found on the other side would be an understatement, "Jethro?" she asked, looking him up and down.

His hair was long like it had been in Europe and he had a beard and was tanned, she never thought he'd looked so attractive.

"Jenny?" he asked confused "What are you doing here?" he asked confused even more.

Jenny bit back a laugh "I live here" she said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"You bought my house?" Gibbs said in disbelief

"My house" she stated teasingly.

Gibbs couldn't help but chuckle, it was music to Jenny's ears "Can I come in to see what you've done to the place?" he asked.

"Of course" She stated stepping aside to let him pass.

Five minutes later Gibbs finished his tour "You haven't changed it much" he noted.

"Just made some more modern touches" she said motioning to the large flat screen TV that replaced the old small tiny television he had.

"So what have you done to the basement?" he asked opening to ever so familiar door, but still found it empty like the last time he'd seen it.

"Haven't decided yet, I might turn it into a bar or maybe an office" she mused, watching as his face scrunched up in a disapproving manor "Or I might start to build a boat" she said watching as he bit back a smirk. "Jethro, why were you on my door step?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Retirement got boring, you know me need to help people" he said moving to the top step to meet her.

"Really?" she asked raising an eyebrow again.

"Yeah, plus I really missed the team, even DiNozzo, but don't tell him that" he gave her a smile.

"So you want your jobs back huh" she said shaking her head. "You think you can just waltz back into people's lives and they'll forgive you, you just flutter your pretty blue eyes and they'll forget you ever broke their hearts, walked away without saying a word?" she asked.

"I'm hoping to show _people _that I am sorry for what I did, I know it wasn't right to leave them and to be honest it hurt me too Jen, I just hope people can learn to forgive me" he said moving closer to her.

"And how do you expect to show people you're sorry?" she asked unconsciously stepping closer to him.

Slowly he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulling her close to him "By doing this" he mumbled in her ear making her shiver before she felt his lips on hers, the kiss was slow and loving, like a true kiss should be, she couldn't help her hands gripping his hair as his travelled down her back before resting on her hips.

"You on your way to be forgiven" Jenny mumble resting her forehead against his.

"What else can I do?" he whispered, still a little out of breath after the kiss.

Jenny pretended to think for a moment as her arms went around his neck and her fingers played with the longer strands of his hair "Shave" she said brining one finger and running it along his beard.

"Done, anything else?" he asked.

"Stay forever" she said before kissing him once again before laughing as he lifted her up in his arms and began to carry her up the stairs "I take it you know where the bedroom is" she mumbled against his lips, making him grin before covering her lips with his.

For both Jenny and Gibbs after that moment, the house finally felt like a home.

The end…

**So what did you think? Sorry for any mistakes it's way past midnight here in England. **

**Please review.**


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